1. Field of Invention
The invention concerns an apparatus for receiving and fixing fish within a device for processing fish, comprising a trunk clamping means and a pectoral fin receptacle composed of at least two stops, the trunk clamping means being capable of being moved out of a receiving position into a clamping position and vice versa.
2. Related Art
Apparatuses of this kind are used particularly in the fish-processing industry and serve to hold the fish to be treated in a given position during processing. For the treatment or processing of fish it is of great importance that the fish lie and are held in a given position, preferably extended in their longitudinal extent, e.g. during cutting open of the throats, beheading, opening of the abdominal cavity, etc. In particular, the apparatus is used in conjunction with head supports and/or a head clamping means in order to support and fix the fish over its whole length, an unsupported region usually existing between the apparatus for receiving and fixing the fish on the one hand and the head support/head clamping means on the other hand. The combination of apparatus for receiving and fixing the fish and the head support/head clamping means on the other hand is, however, not mandatory.
Apparatuses for receiving and fixing fish are known. Such an apparatus can be found in WO 02/063967, for example. The apparatus for receiving and fixing fish which is shown there forms part of a slaughtering apparatus. The slaughtering apparatus comprises several fish receptacles forming a fish receiving drum. The rotationally driven fish receiving drum moves the fish which are fixed in the fish receptacles from one treatment station to the next. Naturally, the apparatus for receiving and fixing fish can also be designed as a single element or a component in other apparatuses, machines or the like.
In the apparatus for receiving and fixing the fish which is known from the WO document, the fish are laid with their back first, head to the right in the stationary fish receptacle, the trunk clamping means being opened to the maximum while the fish is laid in (receiving position), so that the fish is initially held only by the pectoral fin receptacle. In the event that a head support/head clamping means is provided, the head of the fish lies loosely on the head support without clamping. Otherwise the head of the fish would “hang” free. After actuation, the trunk clamping means is closed to fix the fish inside (clamping position). The fish is then fixed in the region of the trunk in front of the pectoral fins, seen from the tail. In other words, after being laid in the generic apparatus the fish are aligned along their longitudinal extent from the tail to the pectoral fins. If a head support/head clamping means is used, the region of the head is supported as well. However, for various reasons, for example the degree of freshness, deformation arising in rigor mortis or the like, the fish can be flexible, rigid, soft, curved, etc., as a result of which the region starting from the pectoral fins in the direction of the head or the region between the known trunk clamping means and the head support is not aligned in the longitudinal extent of the fish. This effect can be further reinforced by external circumstances such as e.g. a strong swell. A fish which is not fully aligned, however, makes subsequent treatment/processing difficult.